Federal politics has a new party, with two “teal” MPs but no leader.
Sydney MPs Zali Steggall, who holds the seat of Warringah, and Allegra Spender, from Wentworth, on Thursday formally announced the Community Strong Australia party.
So far they have not attracted other teal MPs. Monique Ryan and Kate Chaney earlier ruled out joining. Nicolette Boele said on Thursday that “for now” she was remaining an independent, which was the “mandate” her electorate of Bradfield had given her.
Community Strong Australia does not have enough MPs to have party status in the parliament. As for not having a leader, Steggall said it was “a media construct of always thinking about leadership and power”.
Steggall and Spender said the new party “represents a positive vision for Australia’s future – one built from the ground up by communities, driven by integrity, evidence-based policy and a belief that better politics is possible”.
The new network would support community-backed candidates and parliamentarians in both the lower house and the Senate.
Community Strong Australia Website
The move is seen as a way to try to exercise more influence, for instance by sponsoring Senate candidates, and by a collective role if there were a hung parliament after the next election. The teals took Liberal seats and the party would hope to attract more disillusioned Liberal supporters given that party’s collapse in the polls.
The party is also a response to the new electoral funding provisions that will operate for the next election, which the teal independents have objected to strongly, saying they will disadvantage independent MPs and new candidates.
Neither Steggall nor Spender has sought money since the last election from Climate 200 – which played a major role in funding and campaign support for the teal movement generally in the 2022 and 2025 elections.
Under the rules of the new party, its parliamentarians would not be bound to vote together.
Steggall, who was elected in 2019 and thus was a forerunner of the 2022 teal wave, said: “The community independent movement has shown what’s possible when people unite around shared values and practical solutions. Community Strong Australia is about extending that opportunity to more Australians.”
She said people were “frustrated and tired of the status quo. The major parties have contributed to the situation we are in where too many Australians feel like they are not getting ahead.
“The system is not listening to their concerns.”
Spender said: “Our country’s success wasn’t built on complaining or fighting each other. It was built on the common good of hard work, tolerance, shared identity and purpose. It was built from communities up – and that is where politics needs to return.”
Spender insisted she would continue to be her own person in how she voted in parliament.
